I have been a recreational sailor for many years, with a particular interest in small sailing craft; therefore much of the content of my 'blog' will be related to this subject.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Electrics for ‘Minnow’ – Part 3

I finished mounting and wiring the cigarette lighter socket
for the GPS units etc.

I was very pleased with the result.

All I need to do is varnish the mount.

My next job will be fitting and wiring the Autohelm 800. The
tricky part will be linking it to the steering line. When I had ‘Faith’, I
linked the end of Autohelm’s rod to the steering line with two pieces of cord.
They were attached with rolling hitches, one forward, and the other aft. As far as I remember, the
Autohelm was mounted fore and aft on the port side with the rod towards the
bow.

That worked OK, but I
would like a quicker method of linking and unlinking the Autohelm. The ability to
release the linkage quickly is crucial: for example, if there is a risk of
collision with a nearby object.